Green Lantern - Induction
by althechi
Summary: Follow the adventures of Earth's newest Green Lantern - Chloe Ming, a Canadian social work student working in war-torn Udon Khai! She battles cultists, warlords and space monsters, and comes out of it all as Green Lantern 2814.5!
1. Issue 1: Prologue

**Prologue**

* * *

Crashing to Earth.

Have to warn…_Have to warn_…the rest.

Tell John. Or Kyle. Or Guy.

Nimzis and the Gnomons. Heading straight for…

Straight for…

Damn. Turbulence.

Hitting the stratosphere. Not good.

Slow down. _Slow down_, dammit.

No good…no good.

Ground incoming.

Brace for impact.


	2. Issue 1: Part 1

**Chapter 1**

* * *

Udon Khai.

_From: chloem1984 _

_To: minghuang  
_

_Subject: Heading back soon!_

_Hi Dad,_

_We're rounding up the work in Atai, and heading to Mae Ngao tomorrow morning already. It's been an amazing three weeks here, helping the locals build new homes after the recent mudslide. It really says something about their strength and courage of will, after going through so much since the revolution and all these natural disasters. I've learned a lot here that I really wouldn't have seen back home._

_Instead of the usual work yesterday, we had this writer, Andrew Vance or Walsh or something like that giving a lecture about his work here a couple of decades back. Turns out he was the pioneer of the whole "Don't Buy Udon Khai" movement when they had real problems with child prostitution and trafficking. He claims it still exists in pockets here and there, but the provisional government's gotten it more under control nowadays._

_I'm sure you've heard of the recent increase in militia activity around the area. It's just as well that we're leaving now, but First Aid Global's been making sure we're all safe, with a curfew and strict rules on where to go and where not to and all that. So far, the only major 'accident' we've had is Anders (the Swedish guy) dropping a plank on his own foot, and even then he was up and walking the day after._

_I've already forwarded the plane details to Russell, and I'll drop him a call first thing when I get back to Singapore. Talk to you again soon!_

_Love,_

_Chloe_

Chloe Ming read through the e-mail again, checking through for typos and grammar errors and that it made sense in general, before getting ready to send it to her father back home, in Cochrane, Alberta. It'd mark the last of the messages the two of them had been exchanging ever since she'd gotten her hands on a wi-fi connection in Udon Khai.

It'd been her first trip alone beyond either Canada or Singapore, and he'd naturally been worried sick about his little girl – his little soon-to-be 24-year-old girl, but still – heading into a foreign country in the company of just her Social Work classmates. It wasn't unjustified, given that Udon Khai was still trying to piece itself together after its revolution thirteen years ago, but she couldn't help but feel some part of her dad still was clinging onto her as tight as he could manage.

Well, he could stop worrying by this time tomorrow. With the work the day before, she'd amassed enough field hours for the whole term and then some, and her classmates would be taking a morning flight out of Udon Khai, back to the dorms of Public University of Singapore, where she could look forward to writing an extensive report on the work done here, along with a whole new bunch of incredibly 'exciting' lectures by Dr. Yen.

That's when it happened.

For a few seconds, all the lights in the room dimmed and flickered, and static filled the air. Metal fittings swung left and right, and the radio in the corner of the room went crazy. Then, as suddenly as it had happened, it was over. Chloe dashed out of her room, not noticing that the message had failed to send, as the Internet connection had been knocked out in that same moment.

She burst into the pantry below, where some of the rest of her class had still been sitting around and talking as they were tucking into supper – Udon Khainese noodle takeout, called _mi thit bo_. That is to say, they _had_ been doing so till seconds ago. Anders had managed to pour his cranberry juice all over the counter, and Andy deZuniga's bowl had upturned itself in the sink. Christine was dashing from corner to corner, trying to clean both messes up.

Chloe asked, "Hey, did you guys feel that just now?"

Christine shrugged her shoulders, turning to Chloe. "Those two clowns sure did."

Anders threw his hands up animatedly, saying, "We were happily eating and talking, then – WHAM! – the lights died, the building shook…"

"…and you decided to water the whole table with your juice," finished the other woman, folding her arms indignantly.

"Was an accident," he mumbled.

Chloe turned to Andy, asking, "How about you?"

He nodded. "Yup. Think I saw a green streak out the window when it happened."

Her eyes narrowed. "A green streak?"

Andy pointed through the open window. "Just about there."

Chloe dashed back to her room and dug through her suitcase, eventually finding the pair of binoculars she'd lugged along for the trip. She quickly climbed the stairs to the roof, furtively searching in the direction Andy had indicated. The green streak had ended in a small crater, glowing green against the black sky and black ground.

She turned the dials on the binoculars, bringing it into focus. There was a shape in the crater. No, more than a shape. Realising what exactly it was, she sprinted down the stairs, only stopping to throw a jacket on. Her classmates were still putting the pantry to rights when she stormed through it, heading straight to the garage. Anders and Andy stopped what they were doing to follow her.

"Hey, Chloe, what's going on?"

"_Ja_, where're you headed?"

She opened the door of the 4-wheel drive, and started searching for the keys in the glove compartment.

"There's a man in the crater."

"What?"

"What do you mean?"

Chloe turned around, explaining, "I saw a man in the crater where the streak ended."

"A man?" Andy asked, eyes wide.

Anders echoed his expression. "Are you sure?"

Her stare hardened. "Indubitably. I'm going out there to get him."

As she slid into the driver's seat, Anders reached out and grabbed her shoulder.

"Hey, Chloe. This is crazy. You know about the curfew."

Chloe slapped his hand aside, sharply saying, "You want to stay here and let him die, that's your choice. It's the dead of the night and nobody's going to dare to get out there. Someone like that, he's going to die if he doesn't get help."

A devilish grin appeared on Anders' face. "I never said anything about leaving him there. But you want to go crazy and rescue him; you might need help lugging him into the 4 by 4."

With a smile, she said, "Shut up and get in, Anders."

Anders headed to the other side of the car, asking Andy, "Well, friend? Coming along?"

Rolling his eyes, Andy replied, "You and Chloe driving into the restricted zone together? Someone's going to have to drag you two jokers back."

"Front seat's spoken for."

"Whatever," Andy sighed as he got in. He called over his shoulder, "Hey, Christine! We're heading out for a short while. Hold the fort!"

From afar, Christine's voice echoed, "Hey, what do you mean, 'we're heading out'?"

The only reply she got was the engine starting up and old tyres tearing up the dirt track, already beyond the gates of the camp.

"Guys?" she bellowed. She stormed into the now empty garage, yelling again, "_Guys?_"

Nobody was there.

Christine muttered, "Oh, for chrissake," grabbing her temples in resignation.

* * *

Half an hour later, the vehicle ground to a stop somewhere beyond the authorised zone. Chloe switched it to neutral gear, peering through the darkness, searching for that formerly glowing crater. After a while, she pulled the glove compartment open, handing torchlights out.

Stepping out, she ordered the other two, "Come on. That's about far enough, I think. Let's look for this guy. I don't want to accidentally run over him as we're searching."

As the other two followed her, the sky suddenly lit up again. A green beam of light shot upwards from a distant temple. All three stared at it, entranced by the verdant flames. Finally, Anders broke the silence.

"What's you suppose is over there?"

Andy whispered, "I heard some of the locals talk about it. They say they sacrifice humans and burn them in there."

"Who? Why?" pressed Anders, his eyes wide.

"They say the war hero Dara Klahan himself feeds off their flames."

Chloe snapped, "Come on, guys. Let's find our man and get out of here. We've got enough to worry about without crazy cultists too."

Anders affected a mock salute, saying "Aye, ma'am."

"Oh, be quiet."

Three beams of light pierced the returning darkness. Cicadas and nocturnal birds _cheeped_ and _chirped_ through the night as they trudged through the unshorn grass. The minutes dragged on, and the three strayed further and further apart, although they kept roughly in visual contact with each other as they continued to look for the crater. After about three-quarters of an hour, Chloe heard Andy holler from her right.

"Hey guys! Guys! I found the crater!"

She dashed over to the source of the sound, hearing Anders' feet hobble after her. Andy was squatting at the edge of the crater, which was now a dull viridian. His torchlight was illuminating the silhouette of a fairly tall man. Chloe leaned in to take a closer look, tugging at the man's shoulder.

"Hmm. He's wearing a wetsuit of some kind. Looks kind of faded, too."

Anders chimed, "So some diver guy walks around the restricted zone hoping to get heatstroke and gets an asteroid on the head instead?"

"I don't know. Come on; let's see if we can…"

Her words trailed off into nothingness. Where there had been birdsong and the scraping of wings there now was silence. Waves of movement coursed through the grass. They weren't alone. Not any more. Chloe leaned in to Andy's ear, and started whispering.

"Let's drag this guy back to the car. Quickly."

He whispered back, "I'll carry him. Just hoist him up and I'll do a fireman's lift. You and Anders go ahead and start the car."

Chloe said, "No. I'll stick with you."

"Okay, okay. Come on, let's go."

It took her and Anders' combined strength – which was still a little shy of Andy's – in order to get the man's limp body standing, and even then it took some effort before they could get moving. The stalks of grass were shaking more and more with each second, and it was some way back to the four-by-four.

Harsh whispers re-broke the silence. Harsh whispers in Khainese. The few stock phrases of the language Chloe had picked up from flipping through the phrasebook didn't indicate that they were well-meaning whispers either. Dammit, where was the car? They hadn't been walking for _that_ long, had they?

Worse yet, some strands of grass off to the east were starting to move in the windless night, too. Chloe prayed they wouldn't get surrounded before they got to the car. Thankfully, they weren't. After trying to stuff the stranger in the back seat and failing due to his flopping from side to side as they tried to move him there, they settled for chucking him in the back, with Chloe making sure that he didn't get hurled out if they hit a bump.

The engine started on each first try, but Anders managed to stall it twice trying to get it into first gear. Just as they started to move, the shadows were beginning to melt out of the tall grass. They quickly formed the shapes of men. Armed men, hollering in Khainese, all with very ill intent.

Chloe didn't register what the sharp **_CRACKS_ **she was hearing were until she also felt something go **_ZIP_** past the car.

They were being shot at.

Chloe ducked down into the rear cabin, trying to find space to hide. What _had_ she gotten into? Were these the militiamen they were trying to warn the class about? The cultists? What was with that green flame that had shot out of the ancient temple? And-

She never finished the thought, as she felt herself suddenly weightless. Hardly a second after she realised that her entire body was out of the cabin, the lump of ground that had momentarily flipped the car struck her full in the back. The car turned sharply and screeched to a halt. The pursuing footsteps were getting closer. Chloe groaned as she tried to get to her feet.

Chloe glanced out of the corner of her eye. The men were here already. She'd never make it. Never. Summoning the last of her strength, she screamed to Anders and Andy.

_"RUN!"_

Nothing happened.

_"GET OUT!"_

The car still wasn't moving.

_"GET OUT OF HERE!"_

The engine started, and the sound of tyres grew more and more distant.

The men were here already. One of them grabbed her by the arms, and dragged her to her feet. She raised her heavy head, looking up at the man in front of her. Cold eyes stared from hollow sockets. He spat a few words of Khainese to the others. One of them produced a length of ragged cloth, which he passed over Chloe's forehead.

Then everything went black.

* * *

Base camp.

The car came to a harsh stop in the center of the garage. Anders and Andy flung the doors open, continuing their argument.

"God-damn 'friend' _you_ are, Simonsen! You knock her out of the car and then just _drive off? Putang ina mo!_", Andy yelled.

Anders gesticulated wildly in response. "Yeah, sure! You say you want to follow us out in case we got into _skit_, and what happens? You sit there frozen in your seat!"

It was then that they noticed that everyone else was in the garage too, waiting for them. Everyone, from Christine to Katie Liew to Ravi Chandrasekhar to Ettie Cormac, who was standing in the far back, idly combing her bangs from her baggy eyes, to Abdullah Alzahra, gazing at the rear of the car, to Dr. Yen, standing with his arms crossed, barely containing his anger.

Finally, he spoke, stressing every word.

"What happened, and _where is Chloe_?"

Anders and Andy glanced at each other, both not knowing who to speak first. It came out in a flurry of barely-finished phrases.

"Well, it's like this –"

"…big pulse in the sky, knocked all the lights out…"

"Chloe said she saw something –"

"…this guy in the crater…"

"When we found him, some guys…"

"– chased us, until she fell out the back…"

Dr. Yen threw his hands up, shouting, "_Enough!_ God so help me, how old are the two of you? Stammering like two kids who broke the principal's window…wait, what 'guy in the crater'?"

The duo glanced at each other again, then at the back of the car. Abdullah ran ahead of the rest to peer into the car's rear cabin. He turned to them slowly, trying to put together just what to say.

"Hey, uh, people," he started, "I think I know who this guy is."

"Well? Who is it?" burst Anders.

"You guys found Green Lantern."


	3. Issue 1: Part 2

**Base Camp.**

The group quickly moved Green Lantern's unconscious body to one of the free hospital beds, raising his head to rest on the hard pillows. The medical staff quickly got to work bandaging what they could, although his suit prevented any form of surgery any time soon. Outside the closed doors of the room, the Social Work class sat around the briefing area, unable to go back to sleep.

Abdullah paced around, saying to nobody in particular, "Man, _Green Lantern_. I wonder what he was doing here."

"I thought Green Lantern was a black guy," muttered Christine.

He wheeled around, explaining, "No, no. This one's the _original_ Green Lantern. Then there was that other one, with red hair I think, and _then_ the black guy. I think he's in the JLA now."

Anders absently added, "Seem to remember the _original_ Green Lantern was that old guy."

"I think he calls himself Sentinel now or something. He's not a member of the Corps or nothing."

"Huh," Anders mused. "Well, maybe he can help us once he recovers."

Andy hadn't spoken in a long time. He broke his silence, saying, "Yeah, maybe."

The conversation died there. Eventually, the members of the class gave up on waiting, and headed back to their rooms one by one. Ettie Cormac was the first to go, vaguely mentioning something about packing. Ravi followed her up, as did Katie Liew. A quarter of an hour later, Christine stood up, stretched her arms out exaggeratedly, and went upstairs. Abdullah, finding nothing to do either, left too.

By the stroke of midnight, there were only Anders Simonsen and Andy deZuniga there, sitting diagonally opposite each other. Both made the occasional glance to the ward doors, which still glared white as the site medics tried their best. As their gaze flickered from the room to the doors and back again, they caught each other's line of sight once. Then again, and thrice.

Finally, Andy spoke up again. "Hey. Uh, Anders."

Anders looked up. "Yeah?"

"Sorry, buddy. I should've done something."

The other man waved his hand dismissively. "No, no. I'm sorry. It was crazy there."

Andy got up, agitated.

"But you were right! Chloe's our _friend_, dammit! We just left her to…to…" he said, trailing off, leaving the rest to the imagination.

Anders sat upright, calmly saying, "Come on, Andy. They've already sent the rescue team out. We're not going to do anything worrying like this. Chloe's a clever girl, besides. She'll figure something out. That or our friend in there wakes up soon."

"I hope you're right," Andy said, sitting back down.

Then it happened again.

The lights dimmed for just a moment, and the night sky was illuminated by a beam of viridian shooting through the skies, straight on towards the heavens. Even as the two scrambled to the window to get a better look, green light pierced windows and cracks of the ward, and the ring, now glowing brilliantly, slipped off Hal Jordan's limp finger, zigging and zagging through thin air, looking for an exit.

Anders gingerly pushed the door ajar to see what was going on, and the ring smacked him full in the face, knocking him over. Andy dashed first towards him, and then in pursuit of the ring, which was speeding straight down the corridor. When it got to the outer doors of the complex, it simply broke through the window next to it, and carried on into the paddy fields of Udon Khai.

It managed to get about five hundred feet into the restricted zone, when its light died again, and it landed in the ground with a soft _chuff_.

The duo stood at the window, staring at the scene which had just unfolded so rapidly. They peered through the darkness, but couldn't find that glow again. Anders cursed in Swedish, slamming an open palm on the wall, and stormed upstairs. Andy stood rooted to the spot, before giving up with a long sigh, heading up too, shaking his head all the while.

* * *

**Elsewhere.**

Suddenly, the cloth was thrown off her eyes.

Chloe blinked, trying to get her bearings, but was thrown to the floor. It was rough and filled with little stones – some kind of laterite. The sound of rounds being chambered into guns echoed everywhere as someone with a sharp blade sliced through the hemp around her ankles and wrists. Then, the pressure was gone. She stared up, seeing the knees of about a dozen or so villagers and the shadows of armed men melting back into the darkness.

She rolled over, gaping at the door of light which shrunk with each moment, until it slammed shut with a thunderous echo. Pushing through pains and aches, Chloe forced herself to get up again. The villagers were huddled together slightly less tightly, but were still clustering to the far end of the cell. Looking around, the only light Chloe found was that filtering in from a barred window, about eight feet up. It illuminated a few crossed flagstones, which were a dull red in the moonlight. Laterite, as she'd suspected.

She absently stroked a knuckle on the rough floor, coalescing her thoughts. Laterite. Rough stone. Something to do with Khmer temples. Old temples. Men with guns. Chanting.

Chanting?

Yes, there was some sort of droning chant in the background. It sounded like Sanskrit, based on their excursion to a Buddhist temple in the second week. Archaic words sounded again and again.

_Svahadipika…kirtanam karoti Svahadipika…_

_Syat ena samrajati vahnitama divasa…_

_Syat ena samrajati adhikatama tama rajana…_

_Syat ena sahanam karoti duhkhanivaha na kimapi…_

At this, she heard a cry from the far corner of the room. A girl, no older than nine or ten, was weeping into her mother's arms. Then, from somewhere far away, a flame roared to life, and a bloodcurdling scream rang out. It took far too long for it to die down, and even as it died, the sobbing and moans of grief carried on and on long after the last breath of the sacrifice died down.

Sacrifice.

That's when it all clicked. These weren't prisoners in the cell. These were offerings, thrown into the furnace by the cultists to some obscure god, almost forgotten except to time and would-be sorcery. A chill of terror struck Chloe to her core. She didn't need a mirror to know what her expression of sudden, total, horror looked like. She could see it reflected back a dozen times over on the faces of her fellow captives.

Unless a rescue came, she would die here. Slowly and horribly.

* * *

**Base camp.**

Dr. Yen had stayed awake long after the rest had gone to their rooms, spending the last few hours slumped against the ancient radio console in the operations centre, listening to static and clipped reports. So far, there had been no whoops of relief or cheers of joy. He felt himself instinctively going for his shirt pocket. When he found nothing, he dug through the drawers, finally finding the object of his quest.

Shit. He hadn't smoked one since his army days.

_Well, there goes twenty years of abstinence_, he thought, as he flicked the matchstick to and fro, extinguishing its flame. As the familiar smell of (cheap) nicotine pervaded the room, he shook himself alert. They were starting to talk about heading back to camp already, all without any good news. The chair was suddenly very uncomfortable.

He paced around the room, thoughts racing through his mind. The next-of-kin would have to be informed, naturally. But how to phrase it? That she'd gone storming off into the restricted zone chasing superheroes? And that nobody had stopped her; hell, that two of her friends had happily jumped into the car and followed her into no man's land?

This was not going to be easy.

* * *

**The ancient temple.**

Chloe woke up.

She must have had fallen asleep some time ago. The light in the room had shifted imperceptibly, and the crowd locked in it was resting too. Not all of them, though. Two of the younger men were keeping watch, with their eyes fixed on the door. They were sticking close to the walls, as though those could protect them from the grasping hands of the cultists. She looked at the window again. It was no good, even at her full 5'3". She'd never reach it, even to take a look outside.

When she tried to get closer to the group, they recoiled from her as though they were less of a crowd and a giant, terrified, beast, scared of its new neighbour. As time passed, they grew more and more comfortable with her, especially a young Khainese girl who ended up snuggling up to her side as the night grew colder. Her eyes were red and dry, and her face marked with tears. Chloe put an arm around the girl to shield her from the chill winds.

An hour or so later, a sudden shiver passed through the group, and the two young men whispered quickly to the rest, who stood up and pressed themselves closer to the walls. Chloe learned why they did this a few moments later, as footsteps sounded against ancient stones, and a keychain jangled outside the lock. A painful _creak_ marked the iron door opening on old hinges. There, framed in the light of the corridor, were the cultists.

One of them, a man with a scraggly beard, barked orders at the captives.

Silence reigned.

He yelled again, this time with anger.

One of the young men, having had enough, screamed oaths to his gods as he charged at the presumed leader of the cultists. Chloe saw metal flash in the moonlight, and then a monstrous roar of thunder as the young man fell to the floor, clutching his bloodied stomach, groaning in agony. The leader waved his gun around the room, repeating the same orders again and again, threatening the crowd by pointing to his comrade's guns.

Finally, he turned to one of his subordinates, and pointed towards Chloe's direction, giving a signal with his hand flat, and at about his hip level. The tall, gaunt, minion nodded in assent and took a few quick strides towards her. He reached, and Chloe blinked in momentary fear. But it wasn't her that he was grasping for. His hand wrapped itself around the wrist of the little girl that had been standing next to Chloe.

The girl screamed in terror, wildly shaking her head from side to side, crying out for someone, anyone to help her. It was then that Chloe knew what she had to do.

She grabbed the cultist's wrist. He turned to her, teeth bared in anger. She raised her hand in peace and pointed to herself, attempting her best Khainese.

"_Take me instead!_"

The tall man turned to his leader, unsure. The other man nodded, and the thug released his grip on the young girl, instead grabbing Chloe's wrists and forcing them behind her back. As they marched out of the room, Chloe could hear the older prisoners reciting prayers – prayers that they knew would be futile against reality. The girl kept her eyes locked on Chloe's as the door slammed shut, the last of her Chloe saw being her little palms pressed together in gratitude.

Chloe thought to herself as they led her down the interminably long hallways. These goons had to have a leader. They had to know she wasn't from here. They had to know that there were people searching for her this very instant. They couldn't get away with this. They had to know that. That is, assuming they were sane men. Which, given they were sacrificing people on pyres, need not be a given fact.

The infernal chanting grew louder and louder as she continued on, and she could make out more of it as she did.

_Kirtanam karoti Svahadipika…_

_Marjayati samsrti sarvavidha duhkhanivaha…_

_Zaci duhkhanivaha divasa samaptam…_

_Zakti Svahadipika preksate ca niraza…_

A man screamed, now not so far away. Chloe shuddered. Maybe they didn't know. Maybe they didn't care. Maybe her father had been right all along, and all of her platitudes about helping people out would turn out to mean exactly nothing when it came down to it, and she'd die in some corner of a foreign field, her true fate known only to the madmen about to throw her into the flames.

The chanting was growing more and more feverish.

_Kirtanam karoti Svahadipika…_

_Saca daha punya dipika!_

Those last two lines grew louder and louder, maybe even loud enough to reach the heavens they were supposedly praying to. Out of the barred windows, she could see the countryside glow a mystical green – the same shade of green that she'd first seen back at the base. It seemed like a lifetime, ago. In some ways, it would be.

Then, the moment when her world changed forever.

It flew slowly, almost luxuriantly, between two bars of the window in front of her, glowing an emerald green. The men surrounding her stared at it, transfixed, as it floated in front of the four of them like some crystal butterfly. It zipped past each of their heads, before coming to rest in front of Chloe. She looked closely at it. It was a plain ring, with some emblem embossed on one of its sides.

It glowed once, and force pulsed away from it in every direction, flooring the cultists. They tried to scramble to their feet, yelling obscenities in Khainese. Their leader had pulled out his gun again, and was starting to aim it at Chloe. She raised her hands in front of her face, trying to explain. She then saw the ring float over to her right hand, and watched as it slipped onto her middle finger smoothly.

There was an explosion of green energy, which faded almost instantly. When the dust settled, Chloe looked at the cultists, who wore expressions of confusion and fear on their faces, their leader gripping the hilt of his gun so tightly his knuckles were blanching white, the other two reaching for theirs as they uttered prayers of protection to their gods.

It was only when she looked down at her new clothes that she realised why they were so terrified.

_Oh shit_, she thought, _I'm Green Lantern_.


	4. Issue 1: Part 3

**The Temple of Svahadipika.**

Screaming an oath, the grizzled man pulled the trigger of his handgun.

Chloe instinctively raised her arms to cover her face. A green energy field pooled around her, and the round ricocheted off it, embedding itself in one of the many stones lining the walls. The other two rallied quickly, and opened fire on her – all to no effect. When the roar of gunfire dissolved into three _clicks_ as hammers struck nothing in empty chambers, she still stood there, unharmed and unfazed.

She experimentally opened one of her eyes, then the other. The three cultists were rooted to the spot, staring blankly at their useless weapons. When she brought her arms down, she could see that they were trembling in fear. Each step she made towards them was matched by two or three of theirs, staggering backwards. Chloe's lips parted, baring a confident smile.

The three grown men shrieked in terror as they dashed down the dim hallway, throwing their guns this way and that. Chloe focused on the ring, trying to replicate a feat she'd once seen Green Lantern do. Three loops of cord sprouted from the ring, chasing the cultists. Once they caught up with them, they wrapped around each of their waists, and the cord tightened, sending them flying back towards her.

Chloe swung her arm left and right like she was holding a game controller, bashing the three of them against the walls and the ceiling and the floor repeatedly. Once satisfied, she released her grip, and the three lifeless bodies lay slumped on the ground. Her arm felt like it weighed a ton, and she fell to her knees. Even that simple stunt had taken a lot out of her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the bearded man stir.

Getting up, she strode over to the man who had ordered the savage death of a girl no older than five or six. The cowed cultist looked up, tongue trying to draw enough saliva to speak. Before he could even try, she kicked him square in the chin, hearing it fracture with a very satisfying _CRACK_.

Chloe glanced around, finding an alcove between two of the long corridors, pausing to stop and think. What was her next cause of action?

The chanting wasn't stopping, and in fact had started again. There was a new voice in there; an old man with a stentorian voice, giving commands. The rest of the voices were hushed and muted compared to his. Soon, the chanting rose to a new fervor, and a captive's pleading voice now entered the scene. Distant flames roared and spat, not caring.

Chloe sneaked down the corridor, heading closer and closer to the source of the chanting. No more sacrifices. No more immolation of innocent farmers and workers. This ended here. She could simply fly back to camp, and try to pass the night's events off as a bad dream, forgetting she'd ever heard of mystic flames and lost temples. But deep down, she knew that she'd never be able to convince herself that would have been the right thing to do.

It wouldn't be what Green Lantern would have done.

* * *

**Base camp.**

The last of the four-wheel-drives and motorbikes pulled in, and grim-faced Khainese volunteers unloaded from them. Dr. Yen stubbed out his third cigarette, striding out to meet them. Their expressions told the entire story, but he had to know. The mission's main point of contact, a certain (ex-Corporal) Sunan slammed the door of his vehicle, approaching Dr. Yen.

Dr. Yen asked, "Any sign?"

Sunan shook his head. "No."

"Damn."

Sunan patted the lecturer on his shoulder, before leaving to organise his men. Dr. Yen returned to the laptop that he'd been drafting the letter on. He'd hoped that he'd never have to do this, but there it was, the document's mostly-blank page staring at him defiantly, challenging him to tell his student's loved ones that their worst fears had come true.

_Dear Mr. Ming Huang,_

_I regret to inform you that your daughter, Chloe Ming Yu-Lin…_

* * *

**The Atrium of Rites**

The farmer struggled every step of the way as the cultists pushed him towards the unlit pyre. He stared wildly at the stars, at the rough-hewn stones of the temple, at the carvings lining said stones. Row after row of ancient Khainese warriors stared back at him, their faces crumbled and worn by the winds of time. Their serene smiles stood at odds with the savage scene they looked upon. The smell of burnt flesh was everywhere.

One of the warriors moved. It turned around, revealing that it was a wizened old man, dressed in ancient armour. His wrinkled flesh was marked by gnarled green glowing scars. Streaks of paint underlined his cold, dead, eyes. The farmer gazed upon him first with confusion, then dawning realisation.

"[You're…]" he stammered, "[No, but that's…]"

"[_Impossible_]?" The old man finished. "[I have learned that few things in this world are. Men say death is inevitable. Not so. Long after even these stones rot into nothingness, I will persist.]"

"[You _cannot_ be Dara Klahan! He would be a hundred years old by now!]" the man blurted.

"[Oh? You do me a disservice, comrade. My ninetieth birthday is just past. But you are correct, in a sense. I would not even be able to speak, had not glorious Svahadipika blessed me with _this_!]

He gestured at an installation, hung high above the pyre. It was a strangely-shaped lantern, glowing bright green against the twilight sky.

Dara Klahan finished, "[An incredible relic, powered by devotion, ritual and…_sacrifice_.]"

At this, he turned to the cultists, ordering them to throw wood and copper onto the stockade. Kerosene was slathered on the wood and metal dust liberally, and the throwing of a single torch was enough to set the verdant flame alight. The cultists began their chant, pressing their hands together in religious reverence.

_[Svahadipika…O blessed Svahadipika…_

_May she reign over the brightest of days,_

_May she rule through the darkest of nights...] _

The cultist behind the farmer prodded his back with the muzzle of his rifle. When he refused to move, he was struck savagely with the butt of the gun, and carried hand and foot towards the fire. He shouted and screamed to the gods above, all to no avail.

_[May she brook no evils of the land,_

_May she sweep away all those in her sight...]_

He was flung into the flames, his clothes catching fire first. His rolling and thrashing about did nothing to mute the flames eating at his clothes, his hair, his flesh. Finally, a long, excruciating scream of agony left his burned throat.

_[Let us give glory to her,_

_And let her cleanse this land of blight...]_

The lantern glowed brighter and brighter with every word of the incantation. Dara Klahan took step after step down the high path down from the central shrine, basking in the light.

_[The might of evil has seen its day,_

_As they see her power with dism-]_

He wheeled around. Gunshots were ringing out from behind the main door. Could the prisoners have staged an escape? Impossible. But then, who was attack-

The doors blew apart in an explosion of emerald energy, revealing a woman. Dara Klahan raised his arms, ordering his men to take up their weapons. However, before any of them could react, she leapt high up in the air, and swept her arms across each other. Two giant green blades followed her gestures, and the cultists' weapons were hurled far from their reach, landing all over the unshorn plains which surrounded the temple.

Chloe descended, heading towards Dara Klahan. As she approached the ground, the cultists began scattering like insects exposed to daylight. Of all of them, only he stood his ground, refusing to be intimidated by this youth. Staring at him, Chloe spoke slowly, the ring translating her words into Khainese.

"It's over. You're not sacrificing anybody else. Ever."

Dara Klahan folded his arms. "I think not."

"Your followers are scattered to the winds. I could level this temple in the blink of an eye if I wanted to."

The old man yawned and walked down the stairs, examining the lantern hanging above both their heads. "Be that as it may, I will persist. That is my blessing…and my curse."

Chloe's eyes narrowed, following Dara Klahan as he paced around the pit where the fire burned like a thing alive, never breaking his gaze at the lantern.

"Do you know who I am, girl?"

"They called you the Green Phoenix."

He rolled his eyes. "A mere appellation."

"You're supposed to be Dara Klahan, the revolutionary hero."

He turned around, asking, "'Supposed'? I _am_ Dara Klahan, Liberator of Udon Khai! I and I alone have discovered the secrets to immortality and infinite power! _Behold_!"

He raised his arms, muttering an incantation. Green light shone from the lantern and sucked into his skin through his scars, and a green aura formed around his body. He looked down at his glowing fists, smirking with power. Neither noticed the fact that the aura around Chloe's ring had grown, too.

"My forces were scattered once before, and all seemed black. But I survived. Deep in the jungles, I found this mystical lantern, whose flame never burnt out. Men now long dead had inscribed the words needed to unlock its power. Beautiful, terrible, Svahadipika…her power was now mine to use. But perhaps you would benefit from a demonstration."

His palms opened, and he hurled green force at Chloe again and again, cursing and yelling in Khainese. But Chloe's shield didn't waver an inch. If anything, it seemed stronger than ever. The legendary hero began to quake in his boots.

"No! This is…this is…_impossible!_ Power! _I need more power!_" he screeched, raising his hands to the skies again, beginning to recite the incantation again.

_"[Svahadipika…O blessed Svahadipika…_

_May she reign over the brightest of days,_

_May she rule through the darkest of nights...]"_

Something curious was happening. The lantern glowed again, and so did he, but now it seemed more like he wasn't truly absorbing its power, but _channelling_ it…straight to the ring.

_"[May she brook no evils of the land,_

_May she sweep away all those in her sight...]"_

Dara Klahan's flesh turned, and his horror became more and more pronounced. But still he persisted. Chloe, finally realising what was going on, brought the ring in front of her eyes, staring as it pulsed with more and more energy.

_"[Let us give glory to her,_

_And let her cleanse this land of blight..._

_The might of evil has seen its day,_

_As they see her power with dismay...]"_

Even as skin flaked off old flesh, and the cracks in his skin grew wider and wider, he still continued, as though entranced. He fell to his knees as tendons crumbled to dust in his joints. Chloe reeled in horror, sticking her hand out as far as she could.

She shouted at the ring, screaming, "Stop it! _You're killing him!_"

But he didn't stop, and neither did it.

_"[Thus do we…give glory to…her,_

_Through the burning…of…this sacred…light…]"_

His chanting grew softer and softer as he decomposed on the spot, everything finally ending in silence.

"_Stop it!_ You have to…"

Chloe's warning fell on ears as deaf as they were dead. A distant wind billowed, and Dara Klahan's ashes blew away, leaving an empty suit of armour lying in pieces on the dais. Chloe stared at the ring of power on her finger, still frozen in horror at what she'd just seen. Then, there was one last short scream of pain, far below her, from the pit below the lantern. She scrambled over to the side to see where it'd come from.

The farmer had somehow managed to roll free of the pyre, whose last embers still glowed, but horrific burns covered his entire body. Chloe dashed down, and quickly kneeled down to cut his bonds. He reached out to her with a burned hand, grasping her cheek. Tears streamed down his blackened face, and he struggled to speak.

_"Malai…Malai…"_

Chloe nodded, even though she didn't quite comprehend. Picking up on this, he spoke once again.

_"[My daughter…Malai…]"_

She nodded again, this time with understanding. With that last breath, he gave up the ghost, and his hand slipped down to the ground, leaving a trail of ashes on Chloe's face. The atrium suddenly seemed very cold, and the winds crossing it very sharp. Chloe got to her feet, and walked back the same way she'd come.

There was just one last thing to settle.


End file.
